First report: I finished The Laughter of Dead Kings.

Keep in mind that my two favorite books in the world are the two preceding it in the series (Trojan Gold and Night Train to Memphis)…so when I tell you that the book was good, but not great, you'll understand why.

It was vintage Vicky and John and Schmidt, but the zingers didn't fly as fast and hard as they used to. Lots of action, some humor, Schmidt is definitely coming into his own (and there is a really cute part at the end when he meets a fellow LOTR fan)…but I figured out who the bad guy was about halfway through (which I never do with Peters books) and the suspense/romance element that I loved so much in the previous books is missing because of the way the previous books ended.

It was fun/funny to experience Vicky and John and Schmidt in a world of cellphones, email and Internet, too. It gave Peters a whole 'nother avenue to explore.

So, my overall thoughts are: good book, fun to revisit the characters, not as good as the previous (but I hold them to very high standards), but overall an enjoyable read. The last line of the book is pretty funny too.

Second report: got a new 'do yesterday. (Am digging the new hairstylist that I found back in Feb when I had a hair disaster.) She takes good care of me. And gets me.

The 'do is a success because:

1) my writing partner Tammy (of the alpha-male brother who ventured bravely into the Romance section to buy my book) went nuts when she saw it last night,

2) the cute young male barista who makes a special Green Tea Latte for me at the Borders coffee shop told me he thought it was "hot" (but he was afraid to tell me it looked hot because I'm married. I told him a woman never minds hearing she looks hot.), and

3) Music Man, upon first seeing it, was like "Wow!" He loved it and thought it was sexy and cute. (This is an important element in the success of the 'do because usually he either says, "Did you do something to your hair?" or, if he remembered that I was going to the salon that day, he might say, "How was the salon?"–ie, not noticing what's different. Or, as he did last time, he said, "What did you do to your hair?" Or he might say nothing at all because he didn't notice.) 

I'll post a pic when I can get a good one. It's a short shag, and the color is fabulous. Cherry Coke. Loooove it. 

Who's going to see The Dark Knight this weekend? Who already went for a midnight showing? (I saw lots of teens hanging at Borders last night, waiting for the midnight show.)